


You Said You'd Never Smile Again

by spencers-renaissance (tomlinsoul)



Category: Criminal Minds (US TV)
Genre: Crying, Fluff, Implied/Referenced Depression, M/M, Marriage, Post-Prison Spencer Reid, Song Fic: Somethin' I'm Good At - Brett Elredge, Speeches, They are so in love, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Wedding Fluff, Weddings, insecure luke alvez, the good kind :')
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-08
Updated: 2021-02-08
Packaged: 2021-03-13 09:53:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,485
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28651575
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tomlinsoul/pseuds/spencers-renaissance
Summary: "As everyone here knows all too well, Spencer was falsely accused of a crime five years ago, and spent six months in prison. I won't go into it because that's not something he needs to relive on his wedding day, but when he got out, though, he had a really hard time. At one point, we had a conversation about it and he told me that he wasn't sure he'd ever smile again.“And so... I made it my mission to prove Dr Spencer Reid wrong for the first time in his life.”or; it's Luke and Spencer's wedding day, and Luke delivers his speech
Relationships: Luke Alvez/Spencer Reid
Comments: 11
Kudos: 44





	You Said You'd Never Smile Again

**Author's Note:**

> Based on [Somethin' I'm Good At](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kIDjovcTQhA&ab_channel=BrettEldredge) by Brett Eldredge, which is unironically one of my favourite songs and I ADORE the concept behind it. This idea came to me just as I was falling asleep the other night and I was legally obligated to write it. I genuinely cried my way through writing it, and I have no idea why. Maybe I am just in love with their fictional love. 
> 
> Enjoy some Ralvez fluff :')

Spencer’s never looked more beautiful, Luke thinks, as they sit in the botanical hall of this ancient museum on their wedding day surrounded by everybody they love so dearly. They’d decided to have Emily officiate, neither of them desiring their relationship to have anything to do with a Church, and had read their vows to one another stood under an arch threaded with ivy and Spencer’s favourite flowers. An elegant gold band settles around his fourth finger like it was always supposed to be there, the outward expression of his utter devotion to the love of his life. Dr and Mr Alvez-Reid.

Glancing at his husband to check he’s ready, he taps his spoon against his glass as the meal draws to a close, gaining the attention of their guests as he stands up, microphone in hand, ready to deliver his wedding speech. They’d decided to exchange simple vows and then deliver longer speeches at the reception, so he pulls out the creased piece of paper he’s folded and unfolded countless times over the past few days. His hands only shake a little bit. 

“Spencer,” Luke says, because it feels like a good place to start, “when I first met you, I wasn’t sure how I was going to survive at the BAU working alongside someone as breathtaking and irresistible as you, not being able to do anything about it. Well, thankfully, we both grew some balls and eventually did do something about it — obviously, since we’re stood here on our wedding day…” He’s interrupted briefly by a collective chuckle from their friends and family, and both he and Spencer can’t resist a giggle either, when they catch each other’s eye.

“But what perhaps isn’t so obvious, is just how that came about. 

“As everyone here knows all too well, Spencer was falsely accused of a crime five years ago, and spent six months in prison. I won't go into it because that's not something he needs to relive on his wedding day, but thanks to the wonderful work of everyone in the BAU — who we both love so much — he was freed. When he got out, though, he, understandably, had a really hard time. At one point, we had a conversation about it and he told me that he wasn't sure he'd ever smile again.

“And so... I made it my mission to prove Dr Spencer Reid wrong for the first time in his life.”

He looks up to see the enraptured faces of his loved ones, and smiles a little at the sight of Penelope already in tears, sitting next to a fond looking Derek. Hotch and Rossi are sat next to them, looking rather appropriately like the proud father figures they are to Spencer. He’d hardly worked with Hotch before he’d had to leave for the Witness Protection Program, but when he’d met him again, this time as the boyfriend of the man he sees as another son, he’d been absolutely terrified. Thankfully, Hotch couldn’t be happier for the two of them, and Rossi had been the first to actually figure out his crush on Spencer, urging him right from the beginning to just say something.

Spencer is already teary, looking fondly up at Luke as he tells everyone just how madly in love with him he is. 

He soldiers on, keeping his voice as light and steady as possible for this part of the speech. “The thing is, I'd never been very good at anything until I met Spencer. I was rubbish in school, always lagging behind, and that didn't really change when I left. I found my place in life eventually, hunting criminals — first in the Fugitive Task Force, and later in the BAU — but before then I was utterly directionless, and didn't even feel completely secure until I did join the current team.

“Spencer will confirm I can't even make toast without burning it, and I’m a completely horrible liar. As you will see when we have our first dance later, I have never in my life met a dance floor that ever did me any good. I actually can't change a flat tyre — contrary to how it might look, it's always Spencer who gets burdened with that job — and I'm useless with any sort of DIY.”

Everyone laughs again, and Luke takes it as a sign it’s going over okay so far, especially when his husband giggles wetly at the reminder of just how useless he can be at some things. It’s always amused him how incapable Luke is at making any sort of food — not that Spencer is exactly Gordon Ramsey, as he likes to point out — and the first time they’d gone out together, Spencer had enjoyed laughing fondly at his dad dance moves far more than actually dancing himself.

“Before I came to the BAU I was… insecure. I thought that I was unworthy, good for nothing, because I was absolutely terrible at so many of these general adult life skills,” he continues, a laugh in his voice as he recounts his awful thought patterns, and everyone else follows suit. “But as I said, I was determined to make Spencer smile. More than anything, I wanted the man I was slowly falling in love with to be happy again. I had no ulterior motive. I had no expectations. I had no hope for anything beyond an eventual grin.”

Penelope is officially in bits by this point, crying quietly into Derek’s shoulder, and JJ is smiling fondly as tears stream down her face too, gripping Emily’s hand tightly as both their wedding rings glint in the light flooding through the skylights in the high, beautifully decorated ceiling. They’d tied the knot the year before, a simple ceremony in a local hotel with only the team and close family in attendance. JJ had been a lifesaver during the wedding planning, knowing all the best vendors and ways to cut costs in every place possible. 

He turns his attention back to his speech. “I thought long and hard about my mission. I had one last hail Mary. One boring winter morning, I woke up early enough to come in at the same time as Spencer, and I bought him a black coffee, a stack of pancakes and a croissant, and that was it. The most blindingly beautiful smile I think I've ever seen.” He can’t help but grin himself at the recollection of seeing that smile the first time, and when he looks to his left, Spencer’s expression is matching his. He directs the next line to his husband.

“And I remember exactly what I thought in that moment, the first time I made you smile: finally. Finally, something I'm good at.” Spencer’s face crumples at that, unable to contain his emotion any longer, and Luke can’t resist bending down and hooking a finger under his chin before kissing him, lips salty with tears. “I love you,” he whispers, and Spencer takes a deep breath, calming himself down enough for Luke to continue. 

“Naturally, I didn't stop there and that's how we're standing here today, but if there's one thing I love about Spencer it's that since that moment, I have never felt inadequate. I have never felt not good enough, and that's because of how he makes me feel. He wakes up every day and makes me feel worth it. I don't know how I ended up with him, what brilliantly kind act I must have performed to earn this kind of karma, but he's shown me every single day that I deserve it, and if you'd asked me before that day when we ate sticky pancakes together in a virtually empty FBI building, talking about nothing and everything, I would have said I didn’t.”

He turns back to his husband, feeling his own emotion start to bubble over, as though his heart can’t hold just how much love he has for him anymore, and a tear streams down his face.

“So, Spencer, I am so grateful and still completely bewildered by how we ended up here, officially husband and husband, but I want you to know how thankful I am to you for your endless faith in me. I love you.”

And with that, Spencer’s on his feet, kissing him. “I love you so much,” Luke whispers as they pull away, bringing a thumb to Spencer’s cheek and brushing away a stray tear. “I can’t believe I get to spend the rest of my life with you.” 

“Well, you do,” he laughs wetly, “and I couldn’t be happier about it.” 

Luke presses his forehead to Spencer’s for just a moment, looking deep into those hazel eyes he’s loved for so many years, trying as hard as he can to telepathically communicate all the love his bursting heart holds. 

Spencer’s wide smile as they pull away to turn back to their guests tells him he already knows.

**Author's Note:**

> Kudos and comments are always appreciated and make me very happy, but honestly just so glad you're here!
> 
> I hope everyone is having a good day! If you aren't, I hope this incredibly fluffy little fic helped just a bit <3
> 
> This is the [rebloggable post](https://spencers-renaissance.tumblr.com/post/642577016947982336/you-said-youd-never-smile-again), and here is my [tumblr](https://spencers-renaissance.tumblr.com) if that's your jam :))


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